An Unexpected Turn
by Flamesandembers97
Summary: The team is sent on a mission to extract a level nine agent when things go terribly wrong. But they may just get a new team member. My first story so constructive criticism is welcomed.
1. Chapter 1

Well this was certainly an unexpected turn. When Skye's day started she had no idea it would end like this. With her, her team, and a extra shield agent tied up in a windowless room. She thinks back and goes over her day for the twentieth time, trying desperately to figure out what she could have done to change the outcome.

Her day had started out regularly enough she woke up at six AM to start training with Ward. It was a regular training session Ward of course was trying to encourage Skye to try a complex move on him. "This is a bad idea, Ward"

"Skye," he said exasperated "you will never get better until you fail."

"Thanks for your complete and utter faith in me Ward" skye said with a sarcastic tone.

But she did as he said and let him take her into a choke hold as he said, "Now since you will most likely be fighting men bigger than you, you are going to have to use your speed and size against them. What I want you to do is elbow the rib cage as hard as possible then grab the arm and twist it behind the back. Don't hesitate to break the arm, the hit to the stomach will only daze the person, and probably not for long."

With yet another eyeroll skye said, " That is assuming the fact that said person is also a super spy slash assassin person."

Before Ward could respond Coulson's voice came over the comm "everybody we have a mission, debrief in five."

Skye took her chance while Ward was distracted and elbowed him in the stomach temporarily disorienting him. She then grabbed his arm and spun under it taking his arm with her behind his back and pushed his arm up causing Ward to flinch.

"How's this?"

"Well," as he said this he did a series of move and reversed the hold on Skye. "You made one fatal mistake, you forgot to twist the wrist. That's what allowed me to reverse our positions."

"Whatever, we have a debrief to attend you can teach me how to break more bones tomorrow."

With this Skye headed upstairs closely followed by Ward. They arrived in the lounge to see everyone waiting for them. As soon as everyone had said hey Coulson spoke up.

"We have been given the task of extracting a level nine shield agent form a centipede facility. She was sent in two days ago on a mission to recover some high level shield files and needs extraction."

Coulson had now pulled up a picture of a young women with light brown hair and piercing green eyes.

"Her name is Rachel," Coulson continued, "the file doesn't give a last name. Probably because she is level nine, but her code name is the Raven."

At this Coulson looked around the room at his agents expectedly. Skye followed his example and saw the shock on Ward and Fitzsimmon's faces. Even May, although she did her best to conceal it, looked shocked.

"Sir," Ward spoke up, "the raven? You mean as in THE Raven?"

"Afraid so" Coulson answered. Simmons finally wiped the shocked look off her face and asked, "but sir, why is Shield sending us? Couldn't they just send any pilot?"

"Every other shield plane is hours out, May set the course we should be arriving in aprox. 30 minutes so suite up everyone."

Sensing this was her only chance to find out skye spoke up, "Ok, hold up rewind the tape, and explain to me what y'all meant by THE Raven!"

The team exchanged glances and finally May spoke up, "She is known mostly for a mission a year ago but she is famous also because she breezed through all shield training facilities in less than three years."

It was Fitz who spoke up next, "And by all training facilities we mean ALL facilities. She is mostly a specialist though, although she is proficient in computer science, engineering, and biochem."

"So she is a jack of all trades, but still what makes her so famous? And if she is a level nine agent why does everybody know about her?"

"Ok there slow your roll" Ward said.

"Well besides passing every shield test there is with flying colors." Coulson said, "Her fist mission went horribly wrong, and she saved the lives of over a hundred students at the academy."

"And not many know about her, only level 7s have access to that. The only reason me and Simmons know about her is because she saved our lives." Fitz finished with a tone of admiration.

"Ok, but why..." Skye was about to ask but was cut off by Coulson.

"This conversation will have to be continued later." Coulson said staring up at the screen, "She's contacting us."


	2. Chapter 2

The screen was blinking red and Coulson finally took the hint and pressed answer. They were immediately met with the face of Rachel in a room with a steel door behind her back. After a few second of studying the team she finally broke the silence saying, "So I guess you guys are my ride. What's your ETA?"

"Umm," Coulson said looking over at May as she mouthed "ten minutes" at him. "We should arrive in ten minutes, we will then come in to assist your escape."

Skye was wondering if she was the only one that noticed the sound of yelling and what sounded like someone trying to break down the door. Judging from the concerned looks on the others faces, she wasn't. Skye turned her attention back to the screen. She found heralded wondering what Rachel could have done to earn such a reputation. She looked no older than Skye.

"That won't be necessary. There is a landing pad on the east side of the building will met you and your team there." She obviously was about to end the call until Coulson spoke up.

"Wait!" She turned to look at Coulson with a confused glare. "From the way it sounds it doesn't seem like you are going to be able to just waltz out of there"

"So?"

"So, stay put I'll take my team inside and assist you when we arrive."

At this point she got a different look on her face it was almost, comical? No. Skye must be imaging it. Rachel spoke up again and said, "That would only complicate things"

As she looked at the team though she saw their confusion by what she just said. "You would be putting more people in harms way thank necessary." She said with a dismissive tone, "I am perfectly capable of getting out here on my own."

At this she looked at her watch and said "I will be a little late at the landing strip, see you all soon" With this she ended the call.

"May how far out are we?" Coulson Asked.

"Five minutes." Coulson sighed, "Alright then Skye, Ward, May hurry and suite up. As soon as we land we are going in to help. Wether she likes it or not."

They were waiting on the cargo bay when they touched down. Skye couldn't help feeling a little worried about what they were doing. The Raven herself, Skye was still really curious as to how she got that name, had told them to stay put. But Coulson wouldn't hear it. He was determined and once Coulson set his mind to something there was no changing it. After putting on their tactile gear they met up on the cargo bay. Where Fitzsimmons were buzzing around trying to prepare them for what was inside. Skye was trying to run over all her training in her head when Ward walked up.

"Ready?" Ward asked her.

"Ready as I'll ever be." Skye replied with a forced smile. Fitzsimmons had finally stopped running around and were checking everyone's comms.

"I want you to start a thermal scan of the building" Coulson said as Simmons handed him his earpiece.

Coulson was answered by a worried looking Fitz in the lab. " There seems to be a problem sir. I can't get thermal imaging to work on the building. I think It is built with a polymer specifically designed for that purpose."

"Not only that sir but the schematics of the building are heavily encrypted." Simmons added in a worried tone. "It will take us a while to run the decryption."

Coulson exchanged a worried glances with his team.

They had landed now and opened the cargo door. They stepped outside guns raised. The ICERS had been abandoned for this mission since they longer worked on the centipede soldiers. Skye could hear the alarms blaring and realized that this was not going to be a suprise attack.

"Fitzsimmons can you hear me?" Coulson asked.

"Loud and clear sir"

"All right well since we are going to have to do this the old fashion way, see if you can hack into their security feed. Ward, May y'all are up front me and Skye will be right behind you. Let's go"

"Sir," Simmons spoke up, "Fitz and I aren't as proficient as Skye with computers. Wouldn't she be of more use on the bus?"

Skye could hear the worry in Simmons voice. She suspected that her friend was just worried and didn't need Skye on the bus at all. Apparently Coulson suspected that to because he answered,

"Not today, this is a big facility. We need all the help we can get."

They found the entrance off to their right. They entered and walked through the halls clearing the rooms as they went. After they cleared the entire west wing of the building they still hadn't ran into a single guard. They were just about to move on to the first floor of the building when Simmons voice came over their comms. "Sir, we just got into the security feed and... Oh my lord!"

"What is it Simmons?" May demanded.

"Sir Rachel is in what looks to be the main entrance of the facility. But she is surrounded. She is still fighting but I don't know how long she will be able to."

As Skye listened to Fitz she couldn't help but wonder Rachel's motives In telling them to wait on the bus. Did she really think she would make it out of this facility alone? She was pulled from her thoughts when Coulson said,

"Ok everyone single file line down the halls. Be alert, let's go."

They made it down the stairs and through what seemed like a mile long hall way before it happened. Suddenly Skye was being held in a choke hold with a cold barrel held to her head. She briefly hoped that this was Ward testing her, but after seeing the bit of centipede technology on his arm she doubted it. The others were continues down the hall oblivious to Skye's predicament until her captor spoke up.

"Looking for something?" He asked in a gruff voice.

The whole team spun around guns raised and took in the sight behind them. Immediately Fitzsimmons were speaking over the earpiece demanding to know what is happening. Skye heard Simmons say, "Fitz find them on the security feed!"

Skye looked at her teammates who all looked worried. All except Ward. He looked desperate like he was trying to send Skye some important message. That's when she remembered their training session earlier. She immediately elbowed back hoping that this was in fact the right thing. It wasn't. Apparently the centipede soldiers had the foresight to wear a bullet proof vest. So the next thing Skye knew she was grunting from the pain in her arm. She hoped she was wrong but she was pretty sure she had heard a crack. Suddenly there were more soldiers behind her all with their guns raised.

"Weapons down. Or she dies." Skye probably should have said something brave like "don't do it", or something but all she could focus on was the pain in her arm. With a look of hate Ward set his gun on the ground followed by Coulson and a very reluctant May. Their hand were then cuffed behind their backs a they were led through the halls. Ward and Coulson looked at her with a worried and apologetic look.

Ward mouthed "You ok?"

She have him a slight nod. Not trusting her voice to be steady. The pain in her arm had only intensified. Especially since they were not at all gentle while cuffing her. She was trying her best to hold back the groans of pain that threatened to escape with every movement. Finally they arrived at what Skye assumed is their destination. It was a large room with a giant steel door at the front. After the huge lobby type lounge in the middle there was a pair of stairways on each side. This however, is not what caught Skye's attention. Rachel was standing in the middle of the room gun raised and pointed behind them. Before she could react she was again taken into a choke hold with a barrel to her head. This causing a gasp of pain to escape her mouth. Skye glanced over to her left hoping to see the team pull off some awesome move to get them out of here. Her optimism was crushed when she saw her team being held in the exact same position as her. The man, who she was assuming was the leader, spoke again.

"Put down your weapon or they die." Skye studied Rachel trying to figure out what she would do. Rachel's eyes were full of fury as she fixed the soldiers with a glare. Skye found herself thanking God that this glare was not directed at her.

Rachel seemed to ponder her options for a minute until the soldier behind her applied pressure to her arm causing her to yelp.

"Ok! Ok! I'm putting my gun down!" As she said this she tossed the gun to the side.

Skye was looking around when she noticed the unconscious bodies littering the ground. She remembered Fitzsimmons saying that she was surrounded but damn! If Skye guessed correctly Rachel had just taken out over twenty guards on her own.

Skye again looked at Rachel she was about 5'7 she looked fit but she wasn't abnormally buff. Her complection was tan like she spent a lot of time on the beach. but what caught Skye's attention the most was the scars on her arms. Before Skye could continue her thoughts she was released as the guard holding her walked over to Rachel. However, Rachel was looking past the guard directly at Coulson.

Rachel sighed, "And this is why I told you to stay put"

Skye was conscious long enough to see Rachel get nocked out before there was a sting on her neck and everything went black.


	3. Chapter 3

Skye was slowly becoming conscious. She was trying to remember what happened. Why did her arm hurt so much? Why did she have this killer headache? Why is she tied to a chair? Then suddenly it all came back to her and her eyes flew open. It took a minute for her eyes to adjust to the lighting but when they did she could only think one thing. She was in huge trouble. She was in a small stone room with no windows and only one door. She looked wto her left and saw Ward and Coulson tied up to chairs identical to hers. On her right May, they were all still unconscious. Skye's thoughts went to Fitzsimmons. They were still on the bus! Maybe they could... Her thoughts were interrupted by the door swinging open. Two guards walked in dragging an unconscious Simmons and a wild looking Fitz.

"Let her go!" He screamed as he struggled with the guards.

"If you even lay one...!" Before he could finish he received a nasty right hook from the guard.

"You're not in the position to be making threats." He said his tone dangerous.

He and Simmons were tied up just like the rest of them and then the guards left. Fitz looked over at Skye and said, "They threatened to kill you all if we didn't come out."

Skye looked at him then at Simmons and noticed the blood that was dripping from her head.

"What happened to Simmons?" Skye asked while she struggled against he ropes trying to ignore the pain in her arm.

"She made a comment on how Ward and May were going to kill them all. They didn't like it." Fitz answered with a worried expression.

"Hmmm" Skye looked over to her right and saw that May was up.

"May? You ok?" Skye asked uncertainly.

"Fine, although my health is not what you should be worrying about right now."

She was right. This was a mess, she didn't know what to do. So she continued to struggle with the rope binding her ankles to the legs of the chair. They sat in silence until Ward and Coulson started to stir. Ward eyes flew open as he fought desperately again this restraints. Coulson took in their surroundings and looked at each member of his team.

"Anybody have any plans on how to get out of here?" He asked. He looked at Skye and noticed the sweat on her forehead and the grimace of pain on her face.

"Skye? What's wrong?" Coulson asked fear obvious in his voice.

"It's my arm. It's fine though, we just need to get out of here." She answered.

Coulson looked as if he was about to argue when Simmons made a soft groan. Skye turned to Simmons open her eyes with a look of panic. Fitz was struggling harder than ever now and started trying to calm Simmons.

"Hey, Jemma it's ok, it ok. How is your head?"

"It's been better I suppose." She looked around, "Where is Rachel?"

A pang of guilt hit Skye in the pit of her stomach. She hadn't even thought about Rachel. She looked around again hoping to see her in the room but was disappointed.

"I... we don't know." Answered Ward. This was the first time he had spoken and Skye fixed him with a worried expression. He didn't look scared or hurt, but Skye could see something different in his eyes, worry. Skye had never seen her SO break his robot character before. Surely he had been in situations like this before. So why was he looking at her with such fear in his eyes? Before she could decide what it was May spoke up.

"Well I'm afraid she is probably not in the best of situations. She is level 9 and probably knows a lot of Shield secrets." May said her face unreadable. Everybody fell silent. They knew what May was implying, and they also knew that she was probably right.


	4. Chapter 4

Skye wasn't sure how long it had been since she had woken up. She was sure that the pain in her arm was going to drive her insane if they didn't get out of here. But she couldn't complain. She was a Shield agent. She HAD to be tough. She kept herself distracted by thinking back to when Rachel threw her gun. She didn't look scared there had been something else in her eyes. It was a deep down sadness that made Skye think that this wasn't the first time she had to make a hard decision. Who was she kidding this girl was a Shield agent of course she had to make tough decisions. Skye also found herself wondering about the scars she had seen on Rachel's arms. They looked like bullet wounds mostly, but from what Skye was able to see there was also some cuts. And by the look of them they had been deep.

After what seemed like hours Skye finally broke the silence, "So, how did she get her name? Rachel I mean, why is she called the Raven?"

"Well, she earned her name because of her willingness to adapt." Coulson answered with a sigh. "Ravens can thrive in a many different climates and situations. they adapt to survive, and that's what Rachel is known for. Most Shield agents don't have access to her file no one knows her story or even her last name. But before she joined Shield she had, from what I hear, a very tough life. The very few agents who do know her story say they have no idea how she survived. Her success after she joined Shield only furthered her reputation." he finished.

Skye sighed, by answering all of her questions Coulson had only made her want to ask a thousand more.

"We have to get out of here," Fitz said before Skye could ask more questions. "God knows what they are doing to her, we don't even know if she is alive. She saved my life." He added pleadingly.

Despite Fitz's urging nobody had a new proposition about how to escape. Skye tested her bonds for the hundredth time causing pain to again shoot up her arm. She glanced down as best she could to look at it. It didn't look good. The area around her elbow was badly bruised and swollen. Skye was pretty sure it was broken, but there was nothing she could do. She decided not to bother the team. They had enough to worry about.

A short time later they all sat in pairs discussing how to escape in hushed voices. They were broken up a short time later by the sound of the door opening. Ten guards entered the final two dragging an unconscious Rachel in with them. She didn't look good. She was now wearing only a sports bra and pants, and had a series of cuts along her stomach which oozed blood freely. Her ribcage was badly bruised and Skye would be surprised if she didn't have broken ribs.

She was forced to tear her eyes away from Rachel when one of the guards turned on Simmons and said, "You! Do you have medical training?"

Simmons glanced at Coulson who nodded before answering, "Yes, I do."

The guard walked over and untied Simmons and led her to Rachel's side. The rest of the guards came over and drew their weapons pointing them at the team.

"Now," the guard by Simmons started, "She isn't responding. we need you to patch her up and ensure her survival."

"And if I don't?" Simmons asked timidly.

"You die." he answered simply. "Oh and don't get any ideas about escaping. If I even think that you are planning something your friends die. Now get to work."


	5. Chapter 5

"I've done all I can, she is alive for now but she will need to rest." Simmons said after what felt like hours of treating Rachel's wounds.

Which proved to be more serious than Skye had originally thought. She had multiple cuts along the length of her abdomen. Simmons turned her onto her stomach and found an identical set of cuts but these were worse. It looked as if they had been cauterized to stop the bleeding.

"What the hell did you do to her!" Simmons demanded.

"That is none of your concern." he stated in a dangerous tone. "What is your concern is weather or not she will live. Because if she doesn't, nether do you."

They then watched as Simmons stitched her up and cleaned her wounds. At one point when Simmons was cleaning the wounds on her back Skye thought she saw Rachel move. She watch intently for any more movement but unfortunately Simmons shifted blocking her view. After she was finished Simmons was escorted back to her seat and tied up once again.

"Will she live?" the guard asked.

Simmons looked sick to her stomach but nodded and said, "But she needs to rest, if you wake her now you risk her going into cardiac arrest."

The guard looked thoughtfully at Simmons, "Good work now we can have a bit more fun with her."

Simmons cringed at the word fun. Skye assumed that Simmons just realized by saving her life she condemned her to more torture. The guards filed out of the room leaving a somber looking Simmons in their wake. As soon as the door closed Simmons started to cry. Skye saw Fitz struggling with his bonds. No doubt trying to embrace and comfort Simmons.

"Its ok Simmons, you just saved her life." Fitz's words however only caused Simmons to sob even harder.

"Yes I saved her, but don't you think it might have been better if I didn't? I mean look what they did to her." She said as she stared at Rachel.

"Jemma look at me," Fitz said in a serious tone. "You did the right thing but its up to us no to get her out."

"Now I wouldn't say that."

Skye and the team all turned as one to see Rachel with her eyes open and a smirk on her face.

"That was exceptional acting, Jemma? is it?" Rachel's smirk grew even wider by the look of shock on the teams faces.

It was Simmons who spoke next, "I was able to sneak her some adrenaline, she told me to do what I had to get the guards to leave."

"Are you crazy!" Ward asked. "They probably have a camera in this room."

"No, they don't," Simmons said a look of pride on her face. "Fitz and I disabled there surveillance system before we handed ourselves over."

Skye was now seriously wondering how Simmons had put on such a good act. Skye had started to believe they were doomed. But now they had found some hope.

"Ok, well not that this isn't fun but I think its time to go." Rachel said as she struggled to her feet.

Skye had no idea how she was still going. She had lost a ton of blood and probably experienced a enormous amount of pain and yet she still looked calm and collected. This is why she is called The Raven, Skye thought. This is why she is respected.

Rachel made her way over to May first who had been quiet through the whole ordeal. Skye realized that the reason she was so quiet was because she was actually at a loss for words. The look of surprise on May's usually impassive face shocked Skye almost as much as Rachel had. After untying May she instructed her to watch the door and moved on to Skye. After she untied Skye's leg she moved to undo her hands which caused Skye to whimper in pain. Within the past few hours the pain had subsided to a dull throb but still hurt badly when she moved it. Rachel fixed her with a concerned look and asked, "What happened to your arm?"

"Don't look at me like that!" Skye replied. She felt a burning need to prove herself to Rachel. To be as tough as her. "I'll be fine lets just get out of here."

Skye expected her to go down to line and continue untying the others but instead she crouched down in front of Skye and took her arm. Skye prepared herself for the pain that would be caused by Rachel taking her arm but it didn't come. Rachel took her arm with surprising gentleness and examined it.

"How bad is it?" Ward asked his expression worried.

"Can't tell," Rachel replied as she stood and continued to untie the team. "It might be broken but if it is, its just a hairline fracture."

She untied the last of them and sat in the last chair. She grimaced as she gingerly touched one of the cuts on her stomach. She looked exhausted, and Skye couldn't say she blamed her.

"Well then," Rachel said forcing a smile as she walked to the door and took the handle. "Shall we?"


	6. Chapter 6

Rachel desisted that she was going to lead them out of the room despite Couslon's arguments.

What really won her the argument was when she fixed him with a smug smirk and said "I didn't want to have to do this but... Do you remember the last time you disobeyed one of my orders?"

Ouch, That was a low blow. But Skye had to agree. If they had just stayed on the bus they probably wouldn't have been in this mess.

"Besides," she continued, "someone has to protect her." She said gesturing to Skye.

"Hey!" Skye complained indignantly.

But seeing as how she did outrank them all they followed her orders. She placed them in a formation with her paving the way and Coulson, May, and Ward forming a protective circle around Skye and Fitzsimmons. Skye would have usually complained about being classified with Fitzsimmons in a field op, but her arm really hurt.

Simmons walked over to her while Everyone else prepared for a fight. "Why don't you let me take a look at that?" Simmons asked gesturing to her arm.

"Don't have time," Skye replied gesturing to the team who were motioning to them to move.

They gathered around the door and Rachel said, "Alright we've wasted enough time. Im pretty sure this adrenaline is about to stop working so let's get out of here before then alright?"

Skye studied Rachel and noticed the sweat on her forehead and the way she was clenching her fists. She must be in a lot if pain Skye thought.

"All right on three." Rachel said as she began the countdown. "One, two, three!" And they burst out of the room. Before skye could even process what the outside of their cell looked like Rachel was in action. Before Coulson or anyone at that even had a chance to help, Rachel had disarmed and subdued the three guards that were stationed outside of their cell.

Rachel glanced back at them and saw them all gawking at her.

"What?" She asked confused.

"Nothing," Skye said. "you're just a total badass."

Rachel rolled her eyes at this and said, "Come on, lets get to that plane of y'alls it looked quite roomy from what I saw in the little video conference we had."

"Bus," Fitz said, "we call it the Bus."

"y'all have plane... And y'all call it the Bus?" Rachel asked in confusion.

Fitz looked as if he was about to answer but was cut off by May.

"Who cares! We have to get going." she said with an impatient tone.

"Right. But we are continuing this conversation later." Rachel said looking at Fitz. "Lets go, no more talking."

Skye felt as if the last part of that sentence Rachel was reminding herself. They continued down the maze of hallways with Rachel checking around each corner be fore allowing them to follow. Although she didn't say anything Skye had noticed that Rachel pulled her stitches and was now bleeding again. When they finally made it back to the lobby where they had first seen Rachel they were met with some resistance. May, Ward, and Rachel went to clear the room while Coulson stayed with Skye and Fitzsimmons. After hearing struggling and blows landing for a minute they were given the all clear.

As they entered the room Skye saw Rachel clutching her side a new wound leaking blood under her fingers.

"Are you ok?" Skye asked running over to her despite the pain in her arm.

"Fine. That should have been the last of the guards so we should be out of here soon. Don't your guard down though, I may be wrong."

As it turns out she wasn't, they made it back to the bus with no more resistance. As soon as they stepped onto the cargo bay everybody breathed a sigh of relief. Their relief was short lived however when Rachel collapsed onto the floor.

"Simmons help her!" Coulson ordered. "And May get us in the air and to a Shield facility!"

"Help me get her into the lab!" Simmons said desperately.

Skye couldn't help though because of her arm. All she could do was watch as Simmons desperately tried to save Rachel's life.


	7. Chapter 7

As soon as the heart monitor was turned on it emitted a long and constant beep. The team exchanged somber glances but were pulled from there thoughts by Simmons "Its not over yet! Ward, Coulson put pressure on her wounds while I figure out what blood type she is. Fitz get the defibrillator ready."

Skye watched as Simmons grabbed three packages of blood and an IV and started blood transfusion.

Fitz was ready with the defibrillator and yelled, "Clear!"

Rachel's body arched of the table but still no heart beat. This process was repeated until after the fourth shock the heart monitor showed signs of a heart beat. The team was then shooed out of the lab by Simmons so she could work. After an hour of surgery and a numerous amount of stiches Simmons opened the doors to the lab.

"She is stable. She has about 150 stiches in all and I was forced to remove her appendix." Simmons said with a sigh

She looked exhausted and Coulson ordered her to go get some rest.

"No, at least not yet sir. I have to examine Skye's arm."

"Oh, right, sorry." Coulson said with a look of guilt apparently they had all completely forgotten about Skye's arm.

Skye wasn't mad though, she had even forgotten about her injury. Simmons instructed her to sit on the examination table that wasn't occupied. Simmons then x-rayed her arm and examined the results.

"I am afraid you have a hairline fracture on your radius and ulna." Simmons said studying the x-ray.

Skye looked at her with a look that said "Really? high school dropout here, remember?"

A small smile spread across Simmon's face and she said, "Those are the bones in your forearm. You're going to need a cast. Unfortunately I don't have the proper equipment to fit you with one. I am going to give you a sling and some pain medication though. The rest will have to wait until we arrive at a hospital.

"Alright cool" Skye answered in a thankful tone. "Pain medication sounds really good right now."

"It's going to put you to sleep so you will have to go up to your bunk." Simmons said with a chuckle.

"No problemo doc." Skye said with a smile.

Her smile faded when she looked at Rachel again though. "When do you think she'll wake up?"

Simmons looked thoughtful, "There is no way to tell. could be two hours or two days. There is no guarantee that she will wake up at all." Simmons added sadly.

At that Simmons walked over to a cabinet and grabbed out a sling and some pain medication. She helped Skye put on the sling and then led her over to the team and gave them the report.

Ward looked at Skye, "Why didn't you tell us your hurt your arm that badly?"

"We had bigger problems at the time." Skye replied.

"I am going to bring Skye to her bunk. You should all get some rest too." She started to lead Skye out of the room but stopped at the door and said, "I will sleep in the lab tonight and keep an eye on her don't worry."

Skye scoffed, "I know you Simmons. If you stay in this lab you won't get a bit of sleep. Let me stay here with here ill come get you if anything goes wrong."

Simmons was about to argue but was cut of by Fitz, "Skye's right Jemma. You've done enough now go get some rest.""

Simmons looked at Skye thankfully and said, "Ok," She said as she took out a syringe. "But this pain medicine will put you to sleep so I will have to give you a different one.

"No Simmons, bring Skye to her room and let her rest, I'll stay." Coulson said. "Now all of you up to your buns to rest." nobody questioned him they where all to beat.

Simmons helped Skye up to her room and gave her the pain medicine and before Skye knew it she was asleep.


	8. Chapter 8

Skye woke up to the sound of clanging in the kitchen. "Wow" she thought as she sniffed, "Simmons must be making breakfast." The intoxicating smell wasn't helping Skye's empty stomach. Her stomach complained loudly as she thought of what Simmons was cooking. Skye stood up and attempted to change her clothes which proved difficult. She was able to change her pants but gave up on trying to change her shirt because of the pain in her arm.

As Skye opened her door she looked down the hall to see all her teammates door still shut. She was as quiet as possible on her way down to the lab. She had decided to go there first to check on Rachel. When she walked in she was shocked at what she saw. The examination table where Rachel had laid last night was empty. She looked around the room and saw Coulson asleep in a chair in the corner. She rushed over to him and shook his shoulder.

"Coulson wake up! What happened? Where is Rachel?"

Coulson's eyes flew open, "What do you mean where is Rachel?" But just as he said this he looked over to the table and his eyes widened.

"Go get everyone up. We have to search the plane."

They hurried upstairs and nocked, none to gently, on the doors of their teammates.

May, Ward, and Fitzsimmons all opened their doors, "What's wrong?" they all said in unison.

"Rachel isn't in the lab we have to search the plane."

They all turned and headed out towards the main lounge where the kitchen was. Coulson and the team stopped dead in their tracks as soon as they entered the kitchen.

Rachel was standing over the stove cooking an omelet. She was still only wearing a sports bra which was still soaked in blood from the night before, and she had bandages wrapped around her entire midsection.

"Hope y'all are hungry." she said gesturing to six other omelets on plates at the table.

"I hope you guys don't mind me cooking. I was really hungry." She said with an innocent smile.

Nobody said anything all they could do was stare.

"What?" She asked, "I hadn't eaten in three days you know." She said in a defensive tone.

Simmons finally found her voice and said, "What the hell are you doing up? you are not supposed to be walking!"

"Jeez calm down! look at me I'm fine. But thank you for your concern. When will we be arriving at the hub?" She asked.

"We should be there by the end of the day" May answered.

"Good because that arm of yours looks like it hurts." She said smiling at Skye.

"I don't think we have met properly yet, I'm Rachel." She said looking at the team expectedly.

Skye was the first one to answer, "I'm Skye, nice to meet you."

Everybody else introduced themselves but they all continued to stare at Rachel.

Rachel let out a heavy sigh, "Look this isn't my first rodeo, I know a when an injury is serious. This," She said gesturing to her stomach. "Isn't going to kill me. Ill be good as new in a couple weeks. So lets eat huh?"

At this she slid the last omelet onto a plate and walked over to the table. Although she was trying to hide it Skye saw that she was liming slightly. Rachel sat at the and looked at the team again apparently waiting for them to join her. Skye took the hint and walked over to her regular seat. Rachel smiled at her as she sat.

"How is the arm?" She asked with a friendly smile.

"Good, thanks," Skye wasn't sure how to continue so she just said. "Thank you for saving us."

The rest of the team had finally moved and were all taking their seats. Simmons was glancing at Rachel with a worried look. "After we eat, can I... uh, can I check your injuries?"

"Sure thing." And with that Rachel dug in with the rest of the team following suit.

Skye took a bite and was pleasantly surprised by how good it tasted. This girl really was a jack of all trades.

After they finished eating they all followed Simmons and Rachel to the lab. Simmons insisted on helping her down the stairs. Rachel agreed only after Skye told her that she was never going to win.

Rachel sat on the examination table and Simmons began to unravel her bandages.

Coulson cleared his throat and said, "Look I want to thank you for saving my team. I know what you went through was probably horrible."

Rachel glanced at Coulson with sad eyes, "Yeah, no problem." was all she said.

Skye thought of how tough Rachel had been. That she endured torture and yet still was as nice and calm as can be. When Simmons finally removed the last of the bandages Skye looked at the damage. What she saw made her cringe the cut were all oozing and were swollen and red. Simmons sighed.

"How does it look doc?" Rachel asked.

"Well as good as can be expected. They will have to be cleaned two times a day though. To protect against infection."

"Alright, do what you have to. Oh and I was wondering if one of you might have some clothes I could borrow, mine are well... they have seen better days." She finished with a smile.

"Yeah I should have some that will fit you." May said her tone neutral. "I'll go get them."

"Thanks." Rachel said with a smile.

"Um, look this is going to hurt. I m going to put an ointment that eats way the dead skin." Simmons said with a concerned look.

"Don't worry doc, I can take it. Lets just it over with." Rachel said the smile dropping from her face.

As Skye watched Simmons dab a clear colored ointment onto her cut Rachel drew in a sharp breathe and closed her eyes.

"I can put you under if you want." Simmons said with a look of sympathy.

Rachel just tightened her grip on the edge of the table and said, "I'm fine, just... just hurry up please."

Simmons nodded and continued as quickly as possible. When she was done Rachel let out a breath and said, "That wasn't so bad."

But right after the words left her mouth she collapsed and would have fallen on the floor if Simmons hadn't stopped her.


	9. Chapter 9

Skye and the team were sitting in the waiting room at the Hub's medical facility. Skye was staring down at her knew cast that had been fitted on her as soon as they landed. Rachel had immediately been taken back into surgery. The doctors guessed that she had some internal bleeding which is what caused her to faint.

"She'll be ok Skye," Ward had reassured her. "She is tough."

Skye didn't need to be reminded of that. Sure she was tough but Skye had come to the conclusion that she was also crazy. The women walked around hours after being stabbed and having major surgery and completely ignored the fact that she had died. Skye laughed humorously at the way Rachel had worried about Skye's arm instead of herself. After a couple of hours of waiting the doctor returned and informed them that they had stopped the bleeding.

"When her stomach was penetrated the knife also punctured her left kidney. She is very lucky that we were able to save the kidney at all." she finished with an apologetic look.

"Thank you very much doctor. Can we see her now?" Skye asked.

"Yes, she has been asking about your arm. She will be glad to see you." the doctor said leading them out the waiting room.

"She's awake already?" Fitz asked.

"Yes," the doctor said with a chuckle. "And your friend is quiet stubborn, we probably would have just chained her to the bed if we thought it would hold her, instead of wasting our time trying to reason with her."

"She seriously wanted to get up?" Simmons asked incredulously.

"Yes, but after we told her she wouldn't get lunch if she got up she agreed to stay." Finally the doctor came to a halt at the door. "This is her room. Do me a favor and don't let her strain herself."

As they entered the room the saw Rachel on the bed with an annoyed look on her face.

"I don't suppose you guys are going to let me get up, are you?" She asked, although she didn't look hopeful.

"Nope," Coulson confirmed. "And if we have to chain you to the bed to keep you there that's what we'll do."

Rachel sighed, "Ok well can you do me favor and get me a change of clothes? The hospital gowns feel like they were designed by some sadistic pervert to make you feel more naked than you do when you actually are."

The whole team smiled at this. Even May had a smirk on her face. "Sure," ill go run and get you something." May volunteered.

As May left the room the rest of the team pulled up a chair and sat by Rachel's bed.

"Ok, so Fitz explain to me why the huge plane you guys have is called the Bus." Rachel said staring at Fitz.

"Umm, I don't know. Does anyone actually know?" Fitz asked looking around at his team.

Ward spoke up, "My best guess is because most of our missions consist of picking something of interest up and bringing it back here."

"I suppose that makes sense. I was kinda thinking it was just so when people walked up to it they would say 'This is the Bus!'" Rachel said with a smile.

There was a short silence in the room until Skye spoke up "So should I call you Rachel or The Raven."

Rachel started to laugh which the turned into a grimace as the laughing sent a shot of pain to her stomach. "You know about that huh? You can call me whatever you like, but if you're asking what I prefer you can call me Rachel."

"Alright the Rachel, can I ask you a personal question?" Skye continued.

Rachel looked at her quizzically and answered, "You can ask. I can't promise I will answer."

Skye was satisfied by this answered and said, "When did you first realize that you were a complete badass?"

Rachel laughed out loud at this and answered, "Well probably the first time I got shot."

Skye raised an eyebrow apparently waiting for an explanation when May returned carrying a pile of clothes.

"Thanks!" Rachel said seeing May enter.

Rachel glanced over at Simmons and said, "Permission to stand?"

Simmons rolled her eyes, "Don't give me that. Yes you can go change but don't lock the door."

"Yes ma'am" Rachel said trying to struggle to her feet but was stopped by Skye.

"Oh no you don't." Skye said causing Rachel to fix her with a confused look. "The first time you got shot huh? Sounds interesting. Tell me about it?"

The last part was posed as a question as Skye made a puppy dog face at Rachel.

"Well, I don't really remember the whole ordeal, but I was locked in a cell and somebody came in and shot me in the shoulder. They left me a bowl, towel, knife, and tweezers and instructed me to remove the bullet. So I did. I guess you could say that is when I realized what a badass I am. " Rachel said with a sad look at the memory.

"Damn," Ward said with an impressed look. "How long ago was that?"

Rachel suddenly tensed and Skye sensed that they should leave the matter alone for now. So she suggested that they let her go change. Rachel let out a sigh of relief at Skye's words and said a little to cheerfully, "Yeah, I am tired of this dress."

Rachel got up and went to the bathroom with Skye staring after her. Skye was remembering Coulson's words the day before, "The few agents who do know her story say they don't know how she survived." Skye realized now that there was more to this girl than meets the eye, and Skye was going to find out what.


	10. Chapter 10

"Got it!" Skye exclaimed. It had been two days since their visit with Rachel at the hospital. Before they left Coulson had offered Rachel a bunk on the bus so she could heal after she was discharged. She accepted happily and thanked him profusely. As soon as they returned Skye confronted Coulson and asked if he could gain access to Rachel's personal profile. She argued that since she was going to be part of the team now they had a right to know. He was reluctant at first saying that most people didn't appreciate having their personal profiles looked at without permission, but eventually agreed. After Coulson made a couple of calls the file was sent over to the command centre on the Bus. When they attempted to open it though Skye discovered that it was heavily encrypted. She had spent the past two days decrypting encrypted the file must have known what they were doing to keep Skye out that long.

As soon as she had access to the file she called the team down to the command centre.

"What is it?" May asked when she arrived.

"I've finally managed to decrypt Rachel's file."

May pursed her lips. She was against this from the start. May felt that if people wanted to keep their past a secret they had a right to. Coulson however, was tired of secrets and granted Skye permission to decrypt it.

The rest of the team arrived as one and as soon as Fitzsimmons saw Skye they ran over and asked, "You've finally gotten into the file?"

"Yes." Skye said with an eye roll. Fitzsimmons had been driving her crazy for the past few days. Ever since she had started running the decryption they had been bugging her. Every time she would see then they would ask how much longer.

"Well let's see then." Simmons said not wanting to wait any longer.

Skye had to admit that she was pretty excited about finally seeing where Rachel came from. So without further delay she opened the file. To there surprise there was nothing in it but a video marked interrogation 1327. They all exchanged confused looks. Most personal profiles contained paper work, psyche evaluations, and documents such as birth certificates and such.

"This can't be right." Ward said staring at the screen. "Skye play the video."

Skye did as she was told and opened the video. What came up on the screen was a surprise to them all. A young Rachel, probably sixteen or seventeen, sat in a Shield interrogation room with shield agent sitting across from her. Skye had never seen Rachel like this before though. She looked scared and confused, her arm was in a sling and she had a nasty black eye. The team watched as the interrogator started questioning her.

"How did you escape?"

"I over powered my guards." She said with a shrug. "They lost the leverage that they used to keep me there."

"And what was that?"

"Something that was precious to me." She said tears starting to pool in her eyes.

"What was it?"

This question was posed a little harsher than it should have been. Skye felt horrible for Rachel. She was also staring to feel guilt pooling in her stomach. They shouldn't be watching this. But Skye couldn't bring herself to turn away from the screen.

"My brother." With these words the tears that had been pooling in her eyes spilled over.

"Oh." Skye could see the sympathy in the interrogators eyes although he was trying to hide it.

"So why do you want to join Shield?"

"I want to dedicate my life to stopping monsters like the ones that imprisoned me." Rachel said the determination evident in her voice.

"By monsters you mean your father?" He asked.

"Yes."

At this everybody took a sharp intake of breath. Her father? No wonder everybody said Rachel had a tough life.

"So how do I know that you are not loyal to your father?"

"Loyal? To him?" Rachel asked with a scoff. "My father has never given me anything but pain and suffering. I assure you I feel no love or loyalty to him."

"I want to believe you. I really do. But I need something more than just your assurances." The interrogator said with a sad look.

Rachel laughed humorlessly, "Do you know what my father gave me for one of my birthdays? You see I was sitting in my cell, otherwise known as my room, when my dad walked in. He told me he had a gift for me." Rachel scoffed again at this before she continued. "I was so excited. He had never given me anything before. That's when he took out a gun and shot me in the shoulder."

"He told me that my gift was a lesson in survival and that i would thank him for it someday. He then left me some supplies and told me to remove the bullet if I wanted to live. I was TEN!"

The interrogator looked like he really didn't want to have to ask to next question but he did regardless. "Is that why you killed him? For revenge?"

Rachel stared at him her annoyance clear. "No. I killed him because it was my life or his. Don't get me wrong I don't have any love for him. But death was the easy way out. He deserved to rot in jail for what he's done."

Suddenly a voice spoke behind them causing them all to jump out of their skins.

"Wow Skye, you're a better hacker than I thought." They turned and saw Rachel staring at them all with guilty looks on their faces.


	11. Chapter 11

"Rachel! I uh.. We umm.. We just thought that. What are you doing here?" Skye gave up trying to explain. There was no explaining this. What they had been doing was clear as day.

Rachel shrugged, "They discharged me early. I think they were tired of having to keep me in my room. I was going to surprise you guys. Looks like I succeeded. Oh, and Skye? I would love for you to tell me how you decrypted that file. I encrypted it myself and considered it unbreakable."

Everyone was taken aback by Rachel's response. Skye thought for sure she was going to hate her now but she didn't seem angry. Skye was trying to find something to say but what was there? They had just watched a very private video of Rachel. Should she apologize? Skye wasn't sure so she just said, "It umm, it took me two days to decrypt the file, it was very well done."

"Thank you."

"So you're not mad?" Simmons asked uncertainly.

"Mad? No I'm not mad. I'm furious. But I'll get over it. I'm not thrilled that you all just saw what you did but what can I say? Curiosity killed the cat. But if you do have any further questions about me please feel free to ask."

She looked at them expectedly but when none of them spoke up she sighed, "Look. I am not ashamed of my past. Nor do I try to run from it. I mean, it's not my favorite topic but the way I see things you can either run from your past, or you can learn from it. After all, what has passed, has passed. You can't change that, so why avoid it?"

At this the whole team nodded in approval of what she was saying. She had such wisdom that Skye found herself wondering if she had ever written a book or something.

"So where can I find it?" Skye asked.

"Find what?" Rachel retuned.

"The book you probably wrote on philosophy." Skye said trying to lighten the mood. "I mean I feel like what you just said should be in books, or at least used in lectures or something."

Rachel actually had to grip the table to stop herself from falling in a fit of laughter. Which the team joined in on.

"You know, I am going to get a big ego if I continue to hang out with you." Rachel said with a smile.

"With the reputation you have, shouldn't your ego already be bulbous?" Skye said sarcastically.

"I usually try to ignore compliments actually, once you get a big head you start thinking your better than everyone else. And if you start thinking your better than everyone? Well that's how you end up alone, or dead."

"Seriously women why don't you write a book? You could name it... I don't know, How to be Badass AND Humble." Skye suggested.

"Hmm, nope, I don't think so. So seriously like I said my past isn't my favorite topic so if you have any questions ask them now."

"I got one." Fitz said, "how old are you?"

Rachel fixed Fitz with an amused look and said, "Twenty-one. I joined my first shield academy when I was sixteen. I finished the academies in three years and have been a official shield agent for two."

Wow Skye thought. Two years and she had already worked her way up to level nine. Impressive. But Skye was wondering about something other than her life with Shield.

"Why did your father do what he did?" Skye asked carefully. Skye knew this probably wasn't the best question to ask right now but presumed that it was her only chance to find out. Rachel glanced at Skye not with fury but with sadness.

"His name was James Walker. He was a loyal member of the centipede program. That's why he had me trained. From the time I was five he forced me to learn karate, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, everything. When I refused he would punish me by hurting my brother. So I did what I was told. He was training me to become a warrior, a tool."

"On my sixteenth birthday he told me I was ready and that I would make a fine addition to his army. He wanted me to help him murder innocent people. I refused, so he killed my brother. That's when I killed him and escaped. I joined Shield a month later."

Skye couldn't speak. Nobody could. They were all to horrified at what Rachel had just said. What kind of father would do that? But this was centipede Skye reminded herself. They prayed on the weak and defenseless.

"So now that you know all about me can somebody show me to my room? I am still not feeling my best."

Skye just remembered that Rachel was coming from the hospital and moved to help her.

"Do you have any bags?" Coulson asked.

"Yes they are in the cargo bay. I didn't want to carry them up the stairs."

Ward volunteered to go down and retrieve them and was joined by May and Coulson. Fitzsimmons stayed behind and started asking Rachel how she felt and if she needed anything. She assured them she was fine and that all she needed was some rest. Skye then led her to the lounge where they had move a bed into.

"Unfortunately all the bunks are taken so I hope you don't mind staying in here."

"Nah that's no problem." Rachel said lowering herself onto the couch.

Skye stared at her and said, "Thank you Rachel."

"For what?" Rachel asked confused.

"Well partly for saving my life, and partly for not ripping my head off for hacking into your file." Skye said with a laugh.

"No problem. Although I gotta say I was kinda tempted to when I first walked in but I felt I could trust you guys. And it felt good to know that somebody would finally understand why I do what I do. People usually don't understand why I try so hard and put myself in harms way. But now I have a team that does. And it... It feels good to have all that off my chest. So I actually should be thanking you." Rachel finished with a small smile.

"No problem. Now get some rest before supper. It's Coulson's night and he cooks a mean spaghetti."

"Oh and Skye? Do me a favor and don't hack into any more high level files. I don't want to have to arrest you."

"Don't worry you won't have to." Skye reassured her.

"Yeah but does that mean you won't do it, or that you just won't get caught this time?"

With a sly smile Skye just shook her head and left the room.


	12. Chapter 12

It had been two months since Rachel had arrived on the bus. In that time she had endeared herself to the team. They were now all really good friends, Skye and Rachel especially. They spent most their free time messing with each other and had become as close as sisters. Tonight was game night and as always Skye and Rachel were on the same team. They decided to play charades the teams consisting of, Ward and Coulson, Fitz and Simmons, and Skye and Rachel. May sat out as usual, she said she enjoyed watching more than participating.

The game started out friendly enough until, after Rachel and Skye had finished kicking ass, Ward accused them of cheating.

"You know if I didn't know better Id say y'all were cheating." He said.

Rachel raised her eyebrows and replied, "Well it's a good thing you know better, huh?"

"Besides," Skye added. "You're only saying that because we totally just destroyed you."

"That isn't what destroying someone looks like. But I could show you if you want." Ward said with a playful smile. They all knew he wasn't serious. They were always messing with each other like that.

"Or." Rachel said smiling at Ward. "I could show _you_."

"Oh, is that a challenge?" Ward asked his smiled widening.

"Yes it is." Rachel confirmed. "Do you accept?"

"I do. let's lay out the mats."

"Oh lovely!" Simmons said in a sarcastic tone and turned to Coulson. "You're not going to let them do this right sir? Rachel was just cleared to return to the field."

"Well that's why she need to do it." May offered with a smile. "To loosen up those muscles."

"Oh lay off Jemma!" Fitz said in an annoyed voice. "This should be interesting."

They all stared at Coulson waiting for his answer. He smiled and said, "Sorry Simmons but I agree with May. If Rachel is going to go back out in the field she should limber up."

Simmons scoffed but followed the rest of the team to the training area. Despite her reservations Simmons still wanted to see the match. After the mats were laid down Ward and Rachel stepped on and sized each other up.

"No hard feelings when I kick your ass right?" Ward asked. Skye wanted to ask Ward what he was thinking provoking Rachel like that. Sure he was good but Skye was pretty sure that Rachel was going to put up quiet a fight.

"Alright you know the rules on my go." Coulson announced. "Three, two, one, go!"

Ward advanced on Rachel and attempted to sweep her legs and pin her to the ground. Rachel however, jumped over his leg easily and before Ward could reacted swiped his leg and pinned him to the ground. She then landed a blow to his cheek. It wasn't a hard blow, more like a; I could've just killed you blow. She then got up and offered Ward a hand up.

"What the hell? How did you do that?" Ward demanded.

Rachel just smiled and asked, "So what was that about kicking my ass again?"

At this everyone on the team doubled over in laughter. After finally containing her laughter Skye gave Ward a once over. He wasn't hurt. At least nothing but his pride. Before Ward could say anything to defend himself Rachel's cell phone started to ring.

"Sir?" She answered. After about a three minute conversation Rachel hung up the phone and said to them.

"Sorry guys but I just got a mission and have to leave immediately." She said with an apologetic look.

"What kind of mission?" Coulson asked.

"Sorry Coulson, it's level nine."

"Oh ok."

Ten minutes later they were all standing on the cargo bag saying their goodbyes. Rachel hugged everybody, except Ward that is, she just gave him a nod and moved on to Skye.

"Don't worry Skye I will be fine. It's a solo mission so I won't have to worry about any hostage situations."

"Yeah but a month? Why are you going to be gone that long? What if you get into trouble? What if we get into trouble?" Skye asked the concern in her voice clear.

"Ah! That reminds me." She pulled out a small touch screen phone and handed it to Skye. "That's a direct line to me. If you ever need help just give me a call and I will show up guns blazing. Anyway I gotta go. Remember its only for emergencies so don't call just for a chat." And with that she turned and hopped into the car that was waiting for her.


	13. Chapter 13

Until tonight the past week had been pretty boring. They were parked in a classified shield storage bay. Ever since Rachel left their game nights had stopped and most of the time Skye was shut in her room on her computer. She had been trying to access the information on Rachel's mission but was still unable to find anything suggesting that there had ever _been_ a mission. Without Skye or Rachel the team rest of the team seemed to be putting ever second of their days into their work. That is, until tonight. They were all sitting around the lounge each working on their own project when the alarm sounded. Somebody had breached the cargo bay doors.

Coulson was the first one to jump up saying, "If they put one scratch on Lola I swear I will kill them!" he exclaimed. "Fitzsimmons get to the interrogation room and lock the doors don't come out unless it's us at the door got it? Everyone else follow me. Let's go greet our guests."

They all drew their weapons and headed down to the cargo bay. When they arrived they were surprised to find it empty.

"They must have already moved onto another part of the plane." Ward surmised.

"Probably the cockpit. At least that would be my first destination." May offered.

"Ok well let's split into teams I'll go with Skye, to the command centre, May you go with Ward to the cockpit."

"Sorry to burst your bubbles but none of you will be going anywhere." A voice said from the balcony that extended over the lab.

The team spun raising their weapons but halted when they saw Fitzsimmons being held by two men In full tactical gear. The voice that had spoken came from none other that Ian Quinn. A very well known inventor who had been working with centipede. After he spoke about five more operatives joind him on the balcony all pointing their weapons at the team.

"Drop your weapons." He ordered.

They did. They had no choice because when they hesitated a knife was brought out and held to Fitz's throat.

"Great now down to business. Skye I would like you to give me the phone that Rachel gave you a couple days ago." Ian smiled as he saw the surprise flash across Skye's face.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Skye said trying and failing to play dumb.

"Oh come now Skye I don't have time for games. Rachel is on a mission to destroy another one of our facilities and I can't let that happen."

He waited but when Skye didn't speak up he said, "Fine. Search her!" Three guards came down and two of them separated Skye from the rest if the team and started to search her pockets. They found what they were looking for quickly and returned it to Quinn.

"Finally!" He then looked at Skye with a sympathetic look. "You know Skye, Rachel has been a big problem for Centipede for quiet a while now. Unfortunately we were never able to figure out her weaknesses, so we couldn't stop her."

"Yeah well not to rain on your parade, no wait that is exactly what I am going to do. Rachel doesn't have any weaknesses." Skye said with a triumphant smile.

"If you weren't in possession of this I would believe you." Quinn said holding up the phone. "But you see Rachel has one weakness. She always had. You see Skye, Rachel will do anything for someone she loves."  
"That's not a weakness!" Coulson exclaimed.

"Oh but you know all to well Coulson that in our line or work it is better to stay detached. Rachel has been smart. She never got close to anybody or spent more than few days with one person. That is until now." Quinn said his smile widening as he glanced at Skye. "Now I think it is time to contact your friend. I cannot wait to meet the famous Raven."


	14. Chapter 14

They were all forced into the chairs that had been drug into the command center. Despite the fight that Ward and May gave them they were outmatched. The Centipede soldiers were about ten time stronger than them, so they couldn't do much. Quinn joined them a short time later and informed them that they will be contacting Rachel shortly.

"Do you always tie people up to chairs? You know I am beginning to see a pattern here. You get the weak ones first so you don't have to deal with the ones that can actually put up a fight. What's the matter? Are you scared?" Skye asked trying to mask the fear in her voice. Not fear for herself but fear for Rachel. One of the guards advanced on her and raised his had. Skye flinched but refused to turn away. If she was going to die she was going to do it with her pride intact.

The guards arm started to her face but was stopped when Quinn said, "Stop! They are not to be harmed. Rachel probably wont trust us enough to make the deal if they are hurt in anyway."

"What is this deal you keep talking about?" Simmons said in a demanding voice.

"Oh you will find out soon enough." He glanced at his watch. "She should be back at her room now lets make the call."

Quinn placed the phone on the holocom table and transferred the data onto the screen. He then gave the command to place a video call to Rachel. It was answered before the first ring was over. Rachel's face appeared on the screen a few seconds later.

"Skye, what's wrong? what... Oh. I see." she then hid the look of concern that had been on her face and addressed Quinn. "What the hell do you want?"

"Well that's not very much of a hello." Quinn said with a hurt look. "I think introductions are in order first, my name is..."

"I know who you are!" Rachel cut him off the anger in her voice intensifying.

"Well then straight to business. As you can see I have your team here with me and they are not in the best of situations. I am prepared to offer you a deal." At this he paused and walked over to Skye.

"What kind of deal?" Rachel asked quizzically.

"Oh it's simple really. You hand yourself over to me, and I let them live."

Skye didn't know what to do. She didn't want to die, but she couldn't let Quinn get what he wanted. "Don't do it Rachel!" the whole team exclaimed in unison.

Rachel continued as if the team had never spoken. "How do I know you wont just kill them after I hand myself over."

"Well you see my boss has this thing about honor. He refuses to go back on his word and makes sure his employees follow in his example. Take your father for instance, did he ever break a promise he made to you?" Quinn asked smugly.

Apparently Quinn chose his words correctly because Rachel sighed and said, "I accept the deal."

"No!" The team all cried.

"Rachel don't do this for us. You can save us some other way." Fitz pleaded.

"Fitz is right Rachel. You can't give into them." Ward said bravely.

The team had said this I hopes, not only to change Rachel's mind, but also to wipe that smug smile off of Quinn's face. But with every word Quinn'a smile only grew.

"Apparently they have never negotiated with Centipede before. Would you like to inform them how it works, or should I?" Quinn asked chuckling.

Rachel sighed sadness etched onto everyone of her features. "If I end the call before accepting the deal, attempt to contact anyone, or try and move my position, you all die."

"Oh" was all Skye could say. She knew no matter what she said Rachel was not going to change her mind. Skye hated herself for allowing this to happen. After all they had been through. After all Rachel had done for them, they had condemned her to an impossible choice.

"So," Rachel said pulling Skye from her thoughts, "How do you want to do this?"

"Oh it's simple. You have two hours to get here or we kill them. You show up unarmed and hand yourself over or we.."

"Let me guess, kill them? I get it." She glanced at her watch. "I will be there within the hour. If they have one scratch on them when I arrive our deal is void. Understood?" She added in a dangerous tone.

"Yes, yes whatever. I look forward to your arrival." And with that he ended the call.


	15. Chapter 15

Skye was desperate. For the past half hour she had thought frantically of a way to escape. She had decided that she was not going to let Rachel die. At least, not without a fight. She had thought, and thought, of a way to get out but came up empty handed. Well, she had one idea but it was a long shot. She was going to try best to be an annoying pain in ass, (according to Ward, she wasn't going to have to try hard) to get one of the guards to hurt her. Since Rachel said that if they were hurt the deal would be off. She had told the team her plan and they were going to help in anyway possible. By her figuring it had been thirty minutes since the video call so they didn't have long.

"Hey butt-head!" She called to the guard watching them. "We have been sitting here forever and I really have to pee!"

"Oh shut up Skye!" Ward said in his best annoyed voice. "We have bigger problems than your bladder right."

"I beg do differ! My bladder feels like it's about to explode."

Simmons took her queue and joined in in the bickering, "You think you have to pee?! I had just finished a cup if tea before all this happened."

At this point the guard was starting at them incredulously. But as they continued his expression hardened and Skye could tell they were getting on his nerves.

"Oh please guys." Fitz joined in. "We have only been tied up for thirty minutes why didn't you just go earlier?"

"Well excuse me. I for one didn't think this is how the night was going to turn out." Skye retorted.

"If you have to go all that bad just go!" May offered.

"Yeah," Coulson agreed. "If it was that bad you wouldn't care."

"Excuse me?!" Simmons asked incredulously. "But we women have standards!"

The guards was now closing his eyes and taking deep breathes. _Just a little more_ Skye thought.

"Oh please don't try to turn this into a battle of sexes." Ward said annoyed.

"Shut up!" The guard yelled. Skye had to hide a smile. He looked furious and Skye knew that one of the best prescriptions for anger was a good punch.

"We might if you let me go pee!" Skye complained.

The guard glared at her and said, "No."

"Oh is mister macho man scared that I might over power him?" Skye teased.

The guard tensed but did not reply.

"Oh look guys he is!" Skye giggled. "He is scared of me!"

"Wow," Coulson clicked his tongue. "I always thought Centipede soldiers were tough. But now?"

The guard advanced on Skye. Skye felt very accomplished. Even though he might kill her.

"Ooooh, look macho man is mad. What are you going to do? Hit a defenseless girl?" Skye thought she had finally driven him to his breaking point. To her disappointment, he turned on his heel and walked out of the room. It wasn't much but at least they could talk.

"What do we do now guys?" Skye asked but before anyone could reply the guard returned. He was carrying something's his time. Cloth. He walked over to Skye and, none to gently, tied a gag in her mouth. He did the same for the rest of the team and then went back to his post with a smug look on his face.

_W__ell great_ Skye thought. _What do we do now_? She looked over to her team and saw a look of defeat on everyone of their faces. She knew that they weren't going to give up. But she also knew that their chances were not good. To much time had passed and Rachel could be there any second. As if on queue an incoming call was received. Quinn entered the room and accepted it.

Rachel appeared on the screen. She looked as if she was in a cockpit of a plane. Although appeared as if she had landed. Skye saw nothing in her expression but determination. No fear. No sadness. No anger. No hope. That worried Skye. Skye had been holding on to the hope that Rachel was going to go all badass and save them. But when Skye saw her expression she lost that hope. Skye remembered what Quinn had said about Rachel's one weakness. That she would do anything for someone she loved. This is why it was a weakness. Because even though Rachel might be able to save them without handing herself over she wasn't willing to take that chance. She would rather die than risk their lives.

"I've landed at the location you gave me. I will be exiting the plane shortly. Meet me in to cargo bay and bring my team. If they are unharmed I will surrender myself." Rachel said with no emotion in her voice.

"HHMMM!" was all Skye could say.

"Lovely," Quinn remarked.

The call was ended and the team carried to the cargo bay still in their chairs.


	16. Chapter 16

Skye thrashed violently on the way to the cargo bay. Her resistance was all she had left. She had no more bright ideas and was quickly running out of time to think of one. They arrived at the cargo bay and were placed in a row near the door. She looked over to her right and looked at her team. They all had a look of defeat that she knew was mirrored on her own face. Skye shook her head vigorously at them trying to tell then not to give up. But what else could they do? It was up to Rachel now.

Skye turned and glanced forward. She saw a lone figure heading towards cargo bay. After what seemed like forever Rachel arrived at the cargo bay. She scanned the scene in front of her she seemed to be waiting for Quinn to make the first move.

Skye studied Rachel. She was wearing standard shield field gear and her long brown hair was pulled up in a pony tail. Rachel's eyes found their way to Skye. Skye saw Rachel mouth something but wasn't able to catch it. She wasn't a lip reader after all . Rachel's eyes were still scanning her team when she spoke, "Gags off, Quinn."

Her voice was strong and demanding and made Skye want to follow her orders even though she was the one that was gagged. Apparently she wasn't the only one that felt this way because the guards immediately moved to them and removed the gags. She then addressed the team, "Did they hurt you or talk about breaking the deal in any way?"

Skye wasn't proud of what she said, but if you are going to fight an organization like Centipede you sometimes have to stoop to their level. "Yes! The second they have you cuffed they are going to kill us!" As Skye said this she glanced to the rest of the team trying to tell them to play along.

"What?" Quinn asked apparently surprised. "Why you lying little..."

"Quinn," Rachel cut him off. "I guess we no longer have a deal."

"But she is lying. My men haven't laid a hand on them." Quinn said in a convincing tone.

"Then why is that one bleeding?" Rachel said pointing at Simmons.

Everybody immediately turned to look at Simmons who was indeed bleeding. She had a deep cut on her upper arm that Skye had yet to notice.

"How...?" Quinn started to ask as he was turning to Rachel but stopped suddenly when he saw Rachel was no longer there.

That's when all he'll broke loose. Rachel came out of nowhere and started fighting the guards behind them. She was quite a skilled fighter but despite her skill the Centipede soldiers outnumbered her 2 to 1. They also had super strength which probably wasn't helping matters. Rachel was only able to defend herself against their blows. Which unfortunately didn't allow her to make any real progress. Skye was furious. She could do nothing but watch.

Skye watched until her attention was caught by movement on her left. Quinn had drawn his weapon and was know walking over to the team, his eyes trained on Skye.

"I didn't want to have to this you know. You brought this on yourself." The remorse in his voice surprised Skye. He did sound like he genuinely didn't want to hurt them.

"Rachel!" Coulson screamed trying to gain her attention. Skye turned in time to see Rachel, who was distracted by Coulson's screams, take a knife in her arm.

To Skye's surprise Rachel didn't cry out in pain. Instead she took the knife and yanked it from her bicep. Because of the weapon she was able to dispatch the two guards that she was currently fighting. She was getting weak though, and as Skye looked at her arm she knew that it was because of the blood loss. Her arm was gushing blood and Skye was fairly certain that the artery in her arm had been punctured.

"It over Rachel," Quinn said and Skye was brought to the realization that he had a gun to the back of her head.

Rachel looked over and dropped the knife and tried to stop the bleeding in her arm.

"You're right. It is over for me. But it doesn't have to be for them. Kill me and leave, you don't have to hurt them." Skye knew that she didn't have long. If they couldn't stop the bleeding Rachel had five minutes at the most.

Skye just stared at Rachel, tears starting to pool in her eyes. This was either the end for Rachel or for all of them. Skye couldn't see Quinn but the fact that she wasn't dead yet proved that he was considering her proposition.

"You're right." Quinn said. From the tone of his voice Skye could just about imagine the smug look on his face.

"I am so sorry Rachel. I didn't..." Before she was allowed to talk further she heard the unmistakable sound of a gunshot.


	17. Chapter 17

Time seemed to slow down. Skye felt as if she could see the bullet flying through the air. That she could see it pierce Rachel's abdomen. That she could see Rachel's face contort with pain as she fell to the ground.

Skye heard screaming but she was just too stunned to move a muscle. She was vaguely aware that Quinn was no longer behind her until he said, "I am a man of my word. Although it didn't turn out as planned we got what we wanted. We won't harm your team." Then addressing Coulson he said, "The GPS on the plane is set to activate in exactly five hours. That will give us sufficient time to get away, and her" he said gesturing to Rachel, " sufficient time to die. Thank you for your cooperation." He turned nodded to Rachel and left.

Throughout the whole conversation Skye never moved her eyes off of Rachel although never meeting her eyes. She watched as Rachel winced as she tied a tourniquet around the cut on her arm and then held the bullet wound in her stomach. Her breathe was shakey and she was struggling to keep her eyes open.

When Quinn was gone Rachel spoke her voice unsteady and her face twisted into a grimace if pain. "Sk-skye," she said struggling to speak. "This, this is _not _your fault. I made the decision to come here not you. Skye, look at me."

Skye did and when she finally met Her eyes Rachel grinned, "Is... is this how it's going to be? Me having to swoop in a save the day?" She let out a laugh which quickly turned into a cough as she spit up blood.

With her good arm she drug herself over to Skye leaving a trail of blood behind her.

"Rachel we are going to get you out if here. I promise." Skye said although she couldn't guarantee it Skye felt that Rachel needed some comfort.

As she untied Skye's hands Rachel scoffed and said, "Don't. Don't make promises you can't keep Skye."

With her hands finallyfree Skye untied her ankles and knelt near Rachel.

"Oh no..." Skye said looking at Rachel's injuries. "Rachel don't go to sleep. Stay awake! I am going to get Simmons."

"I'll be here." Rachel said in a tired voice.

Skye rushed over and picked up the blood soaked knife that Rachel had used, and freed Simmons. Simmons rushed over to Rachel as Skye freed Ward and handed him the knife. Skye joined Simmons at Rachel's side and awaited instructions on how to help.

"Skye put pressure on that wound." Simmons ordered as she tightened the tourniquet on Rachel's arm. The rest of the team was now standing behind them waiting to be of use.

"Wheels up in five." May announced as she headed to the cockpit.

As Skye applied as much pressure as she could on her stomach Rachel grunted in pain and said, "Skye?"

Skye looked at her as tears started to fall down her cheeks. "Yeah? What is it?"

"I need you to promise me something." Rachel said in a pleading voice. "I need you to promise me that you won't blame yourself. This wasn't your fault."

Skye smiled at this. It was crazy. Rachel was laying there dying, and she was worried about Skye's feelings, "But it _is_ my fault Rachel. I am..."

"No, stop." Rachel said. "Listen to me. You..." She was now really struggling to stay awake as she spoke. "You gave me somebody to care for, a team, and a home. That is something I haven't had in a very long time. You've been like a sister to me the past few months, and I love you for it. So thank you." She gave Skye small smile. "Now promise me that you won't blame yourself."

"I promise. And I love you too sis." Skye said. It was ironic really. Rachel had just finished telling her not to make promises that she couldn't keep.

"Good. Now the rest of you guys have to promise to make Skye keep hers."

"I promise." Coulson said and as Skye looked at the rest of the team they all nodded their agreement.

When she looked back at Rachel she saw her eyes were closed. "No! Rachel wake up! Please!" Skye pleaded even though part of her knew it was too late.

"Skye," Simmons said trying to hold back her sobs. "I am sorry, but she's, she's gone."

**a month later**

A month. That is how long it had been since Rachel died. That's how long it had been since Skye felt like herself. Since the team was able to have a normal day at work. Since Skye was able to go to the cargo hold without seeing blood stains on the floor. Since Skye had stopped looking for the bastard that killed her.

The rest of the team kept all their promises to Rachel. But they suspected that Skye still blamed herself somewhat. Although she tried not to.

And now they all sat in silence in the kitchen. They were no longer any witty comments from Skye. No more discussions of missions. Nothing.

Until this morning when Coulson spoke up.

"Uh, we have a new mission." He said in a careful tone. "After breakfast we are supposed to call in to HQ."

When none of the of the team responded he sighed and said, "They have a lead on Quinn."

At this everybody dropped their forks, looked at Coulson, and started talking at once.

"What is it?" Skye said.

"Have they found him?" Simmons asked.

"Where is he?" Fitz inquired.

"Wow guys, I don't now yet. Like I said, we are supposed to call in." Coulson said hushing them.

"Well then," Ward started only for Skye to finish his thought. "Let's go get this bastard."

* * *

**Note: Thinking about writing a sequel. What do you guys think? Y'all want a sequel? **


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